Changes to Ryder Cup Selection Process

[boogielicious]

From pgatour.com

February 24, 2015

By PGATOUR.COM Staff,

The changes made by the Ryder Cup Task Force are as follows:

Vice-Captains: Team USA will feature four Vice-Captains, composed of two former U.S. Ryder Cup Captains and two additional individuals with extensive Ryder Cup experience.

Points System: All U.S. players will earn points based upon the following criteria starting in 2015 and concluding Aug. 28, 2016.

- 2015 major championships (one point per $1,000 earned): The Masters, U.S. Open, Open Championship, PGA Championship

- 2015 World Golf Championships events and THE PLAYERS Championship (one point per $2,000 earned): WGC Cadillac Championship, WGC Cadillac Match Play Championship, THE PLAYERS Championship, WGC-Bridgestone Invitational, WGC-HSBC Champions

- 2016 Regular PGA TOUR events (1 point per $1,000 earned): Beginning Jan. 1, 2016, through and including The Barclays on Sunday, Aug. 28, 2016

- 2016 Opposite Field PGA TOUR Events will not receive any points

- 2016 Major Championships (2 points per $1,000 earned)

The Top Eight: Eight of the 12 members of the U.S. Team will be named on points earned following the conclusion of The Barclays, which is scheduled to conclude Sunday Aug. 28, 2016. This new timetable gives two additional weeks for players to earn Ryder Cup qualifying points.

Captain’s Picks: Three of the four Captain’s Picks will be announced after the conclusion of the BMW Championship, which is scheduled to conclude on Sunday, Sept. 11, 2016. The final Captain’s pick will take place Sunday evening after THE TOUR Championship by Coca-Cola, Sept. 25, 2016. This new timetable also is pushed back two weeks.

[iacas]

That's good. I like that there's a process. I think it's obvious the intent is for the assistants to be future RC captains. This will get their feet wet while letting the captain and former captains do some more of the heavy lifting (you know, such as it is… there's really not much actual "heavy lifting" in being an RC captain, I imagine…).

- 2015 major championships (one point per $1,000 earned): The Masters, U.S. Open, Open Championship, PGA Championship

- 2015 World Golf Championships events and THE PLAYERS Championship (one point per $2,000 earned): WGC Cadillac Championship, WGC Cadillac Match Play Championship, THE PLAYERS Championship, WGC-Bridgestone Invitational, WGC-HSBC Champions

- 2016 Regular PGA TOUR events (1 point per $1,000 earned): Beginning Jan. 1, 2016, through and including The Barclays on Sunday, Aug. 28, 2016

Looks good.

Captain’s Picks: Three of the four Captain’s Picks will be announced after the conclusion of the BMW Championship, which is scheduled to conclude on Sunday, Sept. 11, 2016. The final Captain’s pick will take place Sunday evening after THE TOUR Championship by Coca-Cola, Sept. 25, 2016. This new timetable also is pushed back two weeks.

Very good. Lets them CHOOSE more people who may have come on strong but late, and lets the team possibly help voice support for someone, while also giving the captains longer to choose players who are playing well.

[Huddo]

After the shambles that was Watson et al, you guys might have a better chance this time but will the scars of being 10-6 up still be in the minds? The future does look bright for USA golf with the likes of Spieth and Reed but you will have to hope that Rory does a Tiger and tries a bit of late night driving! Come on Europe!

[turtleback]

… there's really not much actual "heavy lifting" in being an RC captain, I imagine…).

Huh!  You think it is EASY to find such ugly sweaters??

[chriskzoo]

Why only save 1 pick until after the BMW Championship?  This seems to be the Billy Horschel rule, but why not just wait until then to pick all 4 guys if they want?

[dkolo]

Why only save 1 pick until after the BMW Championship?  This seems to be the Billy Horschel rule, but why not just wait until then to pick all 4 guys if they want?

My understanding is that it's logistics of getting everything ready, like equipment, marketing, etc, and they want more lead time for it. And they can probably do a better job of getting more players on the same page that way with an earlier date.

[turtleback]

Why only save 1 pick until after the BMW Championship?  This seems to be the Billy Horschel rule, but why not just wait until then to pick all 4 guys if they want?

If they string out the timing of the captain's picks they get more bites at the Golf Channel publicity apple.  Each separate event announcing picks can be the subject of a special presentation of the announcement followed by hours upon hours of analysis" and commentary.  Why do it only once when you can do it 2 or 3 times?